NAEYC Statement of Commitment

As an individual who works with young children, I, Chelsey Hunter, commit myself to
furthering the values of early childhood education as they are reflected in the ideals and
principles of the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct. To the best of my ability I will:
- Never harm children
- Ensure that programs for young children are based on current knowledge and
research of child development and early childhood education
- Respect and support families in their task of nurturing children
- Respect colleagues in early childhood care and education and support them in
maintaining the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct
- Serve as an advocate for children, their families, and their teachers in
community and society
- Stay informed of and maintain high standards of professional conduct
- Engage in an ongoing process of self-reflection, realizing that personal
characteristics, biases, and beliefs have an impact on children and families
- Be open to new ideas and be willing to learn from the suggestions of others
- Continue to learn, grow, and contribute as a professional
- Honor the ideals and principles of the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct
Ethical Responsibilities to Children
Every classroom has that one child whos more particularly difficult than the rest.
As much as they push away, they desperately need to be pulled closer. The one child
we have this year does not behave in a socially acceptable way most days by hitting,
throwing objects, yelling/screaming, and treating the environment in a destructive
manner. It has been my goal to show her empathy and sympathy and to role model a
caring nature that she can use to make friends. It has been my goal to make sure her
environment is a place she can feel safe despite any misbehaviors.
Ethical Responsibilities to Families
Recently we had an outbreak of lice in our classroom with six children having to
be sent home. In our responsibility to families, we made sure to send out notifications
to all the families so they could be aware of the potential exposure their child may have
had. For the families whose children were found with lice, we reached out to the
families to make sure they had the means to provide treatments. We utilized our
caseworker to help us find any resource that would provide assistance to our families,
and were able to supply them with information.

Ethical Responsibilities to Colleagues

Each day I come in, I make sure I am doing everything I can to be an active
team member by keeping myself aware of the goals, daily and long-term, so that we
may function smoothly as a team and in the class. After all, our main goal is to nurture
the growth of the children we teach through positive methods.
Responsibilities to co-workers
In my team, we work to maintain respect and trust in each other. We
reach out to help one another when the need arises without negativity, causing
guilt, or obligation. For instance, our supply of substitutes is low, therefore when
one of us needs to call off, sometimes (and often times) we have to cover for
each other, meaning longer days. But we recognize each other as having lives of
our own and misfortunes taking place with ourselves or family members and we
cover each other, feeling gratitude for one another instead of resentment.
Responsibilities to employers
It is our duty to uphold the laws in order to protect children. Recently our
company hired on a new substitute who is from another country with different
cultural standards that are not quite professional in a work place with children.
He was found letting the children slide down the slide and in between his legs as
if he were a bridge, so he was told that it may not be in his best interest to
allow children to do that. We will have him again surely, and should his actions
continue, we know well have to take the matter further.
Responsibilities to employees
Another substitute that was recently hired had expressed her desire to
move into a full-time position as a Support Instructor. I explained to her that the
position really is a wonderful position and gave her a few tips and some
information about what she would have to do to get the next available position.
The point is to empower each other and build each other up to encourage the
growth of the company as a whole by nurturing all its members.
Ethical Responsibilities to Community and Society
In relation to meeting the needs of families, it is our responsibility to reach out in
the community and build relationships and resources to help the families and children.
Last year we had an incident with a choking child that had many parents worried,
realizing that if the incident had occurred at home and not at school, they wouldnt
know how to properly care for their child. In their worried state, we moved our parent
meeting date up and arranged for someone from the fire station to come give a

demonstration to the parents about what to do if their child was choking, needed CPR,
or first aid. The parents did not receive certification, but useful information that would
keep their child safer at home.
Individual
My responsibility to the community is to make sure Im offering the best
services I can in early childhood education. The first step is to get the education
aimed at early childhood teaching strategies. Right now, Im working in my last
classes to obtain my Associates Degree in Early Childhood Education and it has
given me resources so that I can continuously better myself as an educator even
after graduation. Ive been given a wealth of knowledge to use in the present,
for the future, and with the community I serve.
Collective
Recently in the state of Arizona, our child protective services was found
with thousands of cases being unjustly dismissed and several children helpless
in their own homes by the people responsible for their care and protection. It is
also our responsibility to unite as a collective group and stand up for the
correction in the system to demand it so that children receive proper care.

Chelsey Hunter